In a move that had been rumored for a few days, Virginia Tech coach Beth
Dunkenberger tendered her resignation from the Virginia Tech job. She was at
the end of her contract, and it was no surprise to see her step down after a
terrible 11-19 record, 1-13 in the ACC.

Dunkenberger took over a thriving VT
program and slowly ran it into the ground. She took previous coach Bonnie
Henrickson's players and guided the Hokies to consecutive NCAA tournament bids
during her first two seasons, a WNIT bid in 2007 and then no postseason
activity from 2008 through this year.

Dunkenberger was a solid bench coach who
got the most out of her players, but she simply couldn't draw elite talent to
Blacksburg. She got every opportunity to win and this year was supposed to be
the win where the Hokies turned it around, given a number of solid returning
players as well as a talented frosh class. Instead, the Hokies were very
fortunate to win just one ACC game.

Names in the mix for the VT job could be
Kenny Brooks of James Madison (a proven winner who can recruit, though he is also a loyal JMU alum) or perhaps the up-and-coming David Six of
Hampton.

Dunkenberger's overall record was 110-104 and 27-71 in the ACC; her
best league finish was 6-8. This was the first season where it seemed obvious
that it was time for her to move on, as her once-sharp team seemed unfocused
and unmotivated at times. It seemed to dawn on everyone at once that they
weren't good enough to truly compete in the ACC in any meaningful fashion.
That sinking realization started to become a self-fulfilling prophecy that
weighed down the program, and Dunkenberger herself, as the season lurched to a
close. It was obvious that Dunkenberger stepping down was best for all parties
involved, even as it was clear how disappointing this was for the Hokie grad who
was once so excited about coming home seven seasons ago.